Report: U.S. companies transferred funds to suspects in Dubai hit

Saturday, 31 July 2010 10:14

Investigators in the United States probing the assassination of a senior Hamas official have drawn links between U.S. companies and suspects in the case, bringing them closer to identifying them, according to an American press report Saturday.

The findings show U.S. authorities playing a great role in the probe than previously revealed, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Mohammed al-Mabhouh, a senior Hamas official accused by Israel of planning a series of terror attacks and weapons transfers, was found dead in a Dubai hotel room on January 19.

Dubai police have publicly accused Israel's Mossad spy agency of the hit, which sparked diplomatic outrage when it emerged that a group of suspects used forged passports of Israeli allies to enter the Gulf emirate.

The U.S. companies identified by investigators include wed-based firms that pair freelance job-seekers with employers and transfer payments between them, the Journal said. Authorities have identified financial transfers from several intermediary businesses into prepaid, cash-card accounts used by suspects in the Dubai killing, according to international investigators.